Guest column: More spring, please!

I was walking quick through the farm store. Then it hit me!

Pungent stuff. Deep smell. Yeah, fertilizer! First sign of spring 2024 for me. It’s garden time. I looked around and lo and behold, they’d already set out the vegetable seeds, the flower seeds, the rakes, the shovels, the implements of backyard destruction. And backyard growth. And all of it was chirping, “Spring is here! Spring is here! Come, plant a garden! Watch the Earth turn green!”

It’s tempting.

I walk outside after work. There’s a fine, warming breeze and a beautiful orange sunset and I know it’s over. Winter is over. Maybe it’s not quite spring, but it’s very springy. That air just tastes great!

I’m ready to move, I’m ready to run, I’m ready to play tennis, I’m ready to jump on a bike for 20 miles. Thirty miles. It’s an invitation to exercise after being cooped in the coop for so long. I’ve already signed up for the fun Winery 5K Run they’re doing at August Hill in Utica at the end of the month.

Just the fresh air and the hints of green. Farm fields looking about ready to go, just about.

I tend to immediately want to take off the glass and put the screens on my storm doors. BUT ... I’ve learned something there ... you can do it too early. Spring in Illinois always seems to come early, but it’s just as likely that the cold will come back. Having screens on your doors too early is a mistake. So I’m waiting until Round 2, when I know that last bit of winter won’t be knocking on the door.

Early spring hikes in the woods, when there’s still a chill, are fantastic. It’s cool out, but your body in motion keeps you warm.

Little flowers here and there are starting to show buds, and now leaves, and I’m always amused that those early flowers grow earliest when they’re tucked near the house ... and get some bounce back heat radiating from the siding. It’s a cute scientific trick.

We have rows of tulips on our front walk. It’s an early positive for spring, and just a great feel-good. I’ve scattered a lot of bulbs around the lawn and some of those will actually work. The ideal thing is this – sometimes the timing is just perfect, and our white and yellow tulips will be grown up and smiling and making a nice colorful contrast with our deep purple lilacs. For about a week only, the tulips and lilacs are a splendid colorway across the yard. And it’s nice to have a drink out back, seeing that and breathing in the lilac air.

Todd Volker lives in Ottawa with his wife and son, and they enjoy reading, kayaking, hiking, tennis and camping. He’s a lifelong learner with books in his hands.